Keep it short

[Gene Heskett]

On Friday 05 December 2008, Steven Vollom wrote:
>Wendell Cochran wrote:
>> Date: Fri, 05 Dec 2008 09:51:02 -0500
>> From: Steven Vollom <stevenvollom at sbcglobal.net>
>> Subject: Re: Kmail and Yahoo (was Re: konqueror search engines)
>>
>> Steve, I realize that time is short & that you have much to do.
>> And I dislike adding to your burden, but:
>>
>> Please trim your posts.
>>
>> In the one cited above, more than 150 lines -- six full screens! --
>> could have been omitted without loss.
>>
>> Trimming will give you practice in using an editor.  (I recommend vi.)
>>
>> Trimming forces review of the topic & discussion thereof.
>>
>> Short posts attract readers; long posts encourage them to skip on to
>> the next thing.  (We're all in hurry.)
>>
>> In short, brevity will help others help you.
>>
>> Wendell Cochran
>> West Seattle
>
>I will try, Wendle.  Something has happened to my computer right now and
>I am having difficulty just making it work at all.  I am having
>difficulty adding or removing anything.  My mouse is sluggish and
>doesn't always work.  I am using the arrow keys to move the cursor
>during the writing of this email.
>
>So that I understand, do you mean when a post gets a lot of response
>back and forth, do you want me to erase the answered portions and only
>return current active questions and answers, or do you mean reword what
>I say?
>
>Someone included a recommendation for installation of a tool that
>organized back and forth conversation with verticle colored lines that
>helped keep track of who was saying what.  I can remove that, however, I
>don't remember where I got it or what it is called.  But I will remove
>it is that will help.
>
>I have an urgent need for my computer to work right now, and it is
>acting very strange, so I have an active post that is a little large,
>but I don't know how to shorten it.  Whatever vi is, I don't think I can
>install it right now, because of the way the computer is behaving.
>
>Sorry
>Steven

Steven, a utility call top or htop is your friend, it lets you see what is 
hogging the system, and with htop, to kill it if need be.

Reboot it for now, and then install 'GKrellm', it is the smallest screen 
utility I know of that tells you what the system is doing all the time.  I 
put mine on the right edge of the screen, on all screens.  Then I keep a 
terminal open on another screen running htop.

-- 
Cheers, Gene
"There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty:
 soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order."
-Ed Howdershelt (Author)
Space is to place as eternity is to time.
		-- Joseph Joubert